Reviving Canning Lids

2020 has been a heckuva year, right?  I'd been paying attention to the COVID crisis since very early in January.  As it gained legs and started alarming people in the US, I decided to place an order for canning lids from Lehman's in March.  I was a little slow to that party and six weeks later I still hadn't received my order.  So when I read on TimeBomb2000 that Target had regular size Ball lids on deep discount, I placed a substantial order.  I planned to cancel my Lehman's order as soon as the Ball lids arrived.  The lids from Target arrived, and almost just as quickly the Lehman's order had shipped.  That's the way my life goes.  But it's been nice to be able to offer lids to friends who need them.

Some time ago I wrote about the first 100 items to disappear.  Canning lids were actually on many of those lists.  And yet a lot of people who like to can apparently weren't all that well prepared in that department.  And many of 2020's new preppers and gardeners suddenly were smacked upside the head when they realized that canning lids were nowhere to be found.

Panicking early, known in some circles as preparing, or just living a self-reliant life, has its advantages.  One is not sweating bullets when canning lids can't be gotten for love or money anywhere.

However, as you know, I just very recently moved.  And I can't help myself, even when I am in the midst of moving, I still have to store food and can fresh produce and meat.  The last time I moved, I was apparently a lot smarter and held out a good supply of canning lids.  Not so this time.  Grrrr...

And this time we also happened to move just as our tomatoes started ripening.  So I picked just a few that were starting to color as well as all the ripe jalapenos, because I wanted to have at least one batch of salsa from my former garden.  And five days after moving into the new house, I made a single batch of salsa.

Then I panicked.

Because obviously I hadn't thought things through.  I hadn't yet found the lids, or the canning tongs, or the canning funnel. Well, actually, apparently we had found the canning tongs and funnel, but no one remembered that.  I happened upon the tongs, while looking for anything which could substitute for them, for which I was super grateful.  Even though we had unpacked the canning funnels, we totally forgot where they were.  I didn't find them until after I had filled all the jars and spilled a bit of salsa down the sides.

But the lids were a different matter.  In going through half a dozen boxes of empty jars, I only came up with four new canning lids.  I'd have to reuse two spent lids to do the batch.  Hmmmm....

While re-using lids in general is a bad idea, I'm not totally opposed to it personally.  I just really don't like to do it.  I don't like to risk losing precious food, especially food that I worked hard to raise and process.

So why did our grandparents reuse lids?

• Because they were frugal.
• Because their lids were thicker--they didn't get tweaked as easily when being removed from jars.
• Because the sealing compound was thicker, it was easier to get multiple uses out of it.
• Because the manufacturers and government agencies didn't warn against the practice.

Most people today do not reuse canning lids for the following reasons:

• The manufacturers warn against it.  Yes, it cuts into their sales, but truthfully, there is a much higher failure rate when reusing lids.
• Government agencies like the cooperative extension services also warn against it.
• The higher seal failure rate is due to two factors--the metal lids are much thinner and therefore more easily warped, and the sealing compound is much thinner, making it difficult to achieve a reliable seal.  
• Even when it appears that the lid isn't warped, there may be just enough of a tweak to allow the lid to stay depressed even when there is no true seal.

But with the canning lid shortage, many people are taking chances reusing their lids that appear to be in good condition.  And they are also turning to a practice that's been attributed to the Amish, to wit, using baking soda to revive or refresh the sealing compound on the lids.

Here's how they reportedly do it:

• In a small saucepan, bring one quart of water and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda to a boil.  
• Add canning lids to be revived, and reduce heat to low.
• Simmer 15 minutes.  
• The depressions in the sealing compound should be minimized enough to permit reuse.

Some people can tell really easily whether a lid is bent and should not be reused.  However, others struggle with this quite a bit.  Here's the easiest way to differentiate between tweaked and flat lids:

• Sandwich a used lid in the middle of five new lids, i.e., two new lids, one used, and two new lids again.  
• Examine how well the used lid nests with the new lids.  
• If it doesn't nest well, toss the lid.

When using the refurbished lids, mark them with an "X" to remind you to pay careful attention to the lid and seal as you remove it.  Make sure the seal was tight and intact.  This should be done with all canned goods each and every time, but sometimes we forget.

So what are the best ways to use refurbished lids?

• Vacuum-sealing.  There is no great loss of time or food if the seal fails.  And usually if the seal is going to fail, it does so very quickly.
• Water.  Some people like to can water to have on hand for emergencies.
• Items that used to get preserved with canning wax, like jams and jellies.
• Foods that you can dehydrate if the seal fails.

Another idea is to use only one refurbished lid per canning load, so that if it fails, you can just refrigerate it and eat it soon.

I'm not recommending the reuse of spent canning lids.  It is always best to have a generous supply of new lids and use them every time.  But I also recognize the reality of not being able to get lids and needing to do something.  And it's information you can share with others who did not prepare as well.

Link to related posts:
The First 100 Items to Disappear
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Canning Jar Lids